Third Coalition

The Third Coalition was the first war of the Napoleonic Wars, beginning in 1805 when the Austrian Empire, Russian Empire, Sweden, the Kingdom of Naples, and Kingdom of Sicily joined Great Britain in an alliance against France. Napoleon won victories against Austrian offensives in northern Italy and Bavaria, destroying Austria at the Battle of San Bonifacio in Italy in early January 1805 and at Ulm and Austerlitz in Bavaria later in the year. Russia's army under Mikhail Kutuzov also invaded into Europe but met the same fate as the Austrians at Austerlitz alongside the Austrian army. In the end, France was the victor, having defeated the coalition many times.

Background
In 1800, the Second Coalition of Austria, Russia, and Great Britain among their lickspittles was defeated at the Battle of Hohenlinden and the coalition was forced to make peace with the Republic of France. Napoleon, the greatest general of France, later overthrew the republic and founded the French Empire. Napoleon inherited the many puppet states of the republic that he created, including the Dutch Batavian Republic, the Swiss Helvetian Republic, and a coalition of German states that became their possessions in the "Confederation of the Rhine".

In 1803, Great Britain, the chief enemy of France, declared war and began a naval blockade of the French coast. By January 1805, Britain had amassed a huge alliance of empires in Europe, with all but the Prussian kingdom and the Ottoman Empire on their side. The French prepared for the war with a large conscription effort, recruiting up to seven units at a time in Paris. When the Coalition declared war, France was joined in their alliance by their puppets as well as their loyal southern ally, Spain.

War
Austrian armies under Karl Mack von Lieberich prepared for an offensive in Bavaria, while Russian general Mikhail Kutuzov was ready to rendezvous with the Austrian army. In northern Italy, Archduke Charles prepared an army to encounter the French general Jean-Andre Massena, whose army was ready to, in turn, conquer Venice and push the Austrians out of Italy. Napoleon, meanwhile, amassed armies on the border with the Rhine river, alongside his marshals Joachim Murat, Michel Ney, and Louis-Nicolas Davout.

The first battle of the war was fought in northern Italy in early January 1805. Massena's army crossed the Piave River and attacked Archduke Charles' army on the other side. The Battle of San Bonifacio was a French victory, although it was infamous for the high cost of the French army at the hands of their own grapeshot fire. Archduke Charles was wounded and returned home to recollect his strength, while his army was shattered and only a few units made it out alive. Massena, not willing to have his army die of frostbite in the cold of winter, ordered an attack on Venice, capturing the city without any major losses. Venice became an important French city, and it threatened Austria's capital of Vienna from the south.

Meanwhile, Napoleon and his armies awaited conscript units from Paris. Paris was the main recruitment center for the French army, as it could produce a high amount of soldiers every week. The French armies awaited their units as General Mack awaited reinforcements from Kutuzov. Kutuzov's army started the war in southern Poland, and marched through Prussia to join Mack in what they hoped would be a rendezvous that could shape the Allied victory.

However, Russia was also focused on more important threats, such as the settling of scores with fellow Coalition member Sweden over the disputed province of Finland, as well as war with their traditional southern Muslim enemies, the Ottoman Empire. Russia's armies mobilized to the south, but none of these units were intended to act as replacements should Kutuzov lose a battle. Nevertheless, Kutuzov came to the aid of the Austrians in northern Italy, re-opening the front.

Great Britain, not a land power in the Napoleonic Wars, readied its Admiral Horatio Nelson with a fleet of swhips to the north of Spain in order to destroy the French navy of Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve. Villeneuve's fleet controlled the seas to the west of Portugal, and was dispatched north to the English Channel in order to oversee the building of more French ships for a planned invasion of England. Boulougne was the site of a massive army planning to take and burn London, but Napoleon eventually realized that Austria and Russia were the biggest threats to land superiority, and he was unsure about if Prussia was join the Coalition.